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Tom Hanna was taken into custody on Tuesday after a probe by state investigators, prosecutors

By Jesse Paul

The Denver Post

Posted:
08/24/2016 06:59:09 PM MDT

Updated:
08/25/2016 09:54:31 AM MDT

Sedgwick County Sheriff Tom Hanna (Photo courtesy of the Weld County Sheriff)

STERLING — Sedgwick County Sheriff Tom Hanna is accused of sexually assaulting a developmentally delayed woman in his home while he was supposed to be transporting her to jail, according to an arrest affidavit released Wednesday.

Hanna, 43, appeared in court Wednesday afternoon in Logan County, and 13th Judicial District Chief Judge Michael Singer set Hanna's bond at $250,000. Prosecutors had asked for $500,000. Hanna wore orange jail clothing and had ankle and wrist chains.

Singer assigned District Attorney George H. Brauchler of the 18th Judicial District and his office as special prosecutor in the case.

Hanna, who has two foster children, told the judge he is in the middle of a divorce. His next court date is Sept. 16.

According to the arrest affidavit, the woman said the sheriff took her to his home and asked her if she wanted to make $60. "I just want sex," he said.

After digitally penetrating her, Hanna told the woman: "This has to stay between us," according to the woman's account to an investigator. "If it don't I'm gonna take you to prison for the rest of your life."

Hanna is being held on suspicion of two felony offenses, including sexual assault on an at-risk adult and sexual conduct on a correctional inmate.

Court records show he is also accused of first-degree official misconduct and soliciting prostitution.

"I felt like I was raped, to be honest," the woman told the investigator. "And this has bothered me a lot and it feels good to get it out because I'm telling the truth."

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According to the investigator, the woman didn't realize she had been raped. When the investigator told her that she had been raped, the woman said: "Oh my God, I didn't know that," and then began throwing up, according to the affidavit.

Hanna denied having sexual contact with the woman when interviewed by agents with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, saying he didn't "know why she would say something like that," the affidavit said. Authorities say he declined to take a polygraph test.

Hanna admitted taking the woman to his home to talk about crime information, which he called a "poor decision," but said he was trying to make sure other people in the small town did not see her talking to him about about sensitive information, the affidavit says.

After dropping the woman off at the Logan County jail, Hanna said he put $20 in her commissary because "he has a big heart and wanted to make sure (she) could call her brother," the affidavit says.

The allegations against Hanna came to the attention of prosecutors and state investigators after one of Hanna's deputies raised concerns about his interaction with the woman, the affidavit says.

Specifically, the deputy said he found it odd that Hanna was transporting the woman to jail in his personal vehicle, which is against department policy. The deputy said he became more worried when he saw Hanna's personal truck parked outside the sheriff's home shortly after Hanna left to take the woman to jail.

The deputy says Hanna's vehicle was parked outside the home for at least 20 to 30 minutes, according to the affidavit.

Hanna was moved to the Weld County jail where he is being held after his arrest on Tuesday. He was arrested in full duty gear and went willingly, Hanna told the judge Wednesday.

Cpl. Matt Turner, of the Weld County Sheriff's Office, said Hanna is at the facility as a courtesy to authorities in Logan County where he was initially jailed.

"I think the main reason for that was mainly for inmate safety," said Lt. Joe McBride, of the Logan County Sheriff's Office. "He would be housed with a bunch of other inmates from Sedgwick that he arrested. He basically would have been placed in the population with them."

McBride says Logan County's jail often hold inmates for Sedgwick, which has a very limited facility.

Hanna was elected sheriff of the Eastern Plains county in November 2014. Formal charges have yet to be filed.

A joint investigation between the 13th Judicial District Attorney's Office, which serves multiple counties in northeastern Colorado, including Sedgwick and Logan, and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation led to Hanna's arrest.

13th Judicial District Attorney Brittny Lewton asked for a special prosecutor to take over the case. Lewton told The Denver Post on Wednesday that she will probably review all the cases Hanna was involved in investigating.

"I have not had the opportunity to get to that stage," Lewton said. "Once the advisement is complete and charges are filed, I will likely look into them."

Hanna is the second public official in the 13th Judicial District to face charges this month.

Sterling's former fire chief, Kurt Vogel, was arrested, along with his wife, on accusations that he stole more than $120,000 from the city while leading its firefighting force. Vogel left the department in April to serve as chief of the Greater Eagle Fire Protection District.

Vogel is on administrative leave without pay from the Eagle County post.

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